Years after a film “Slumdog Millionaire” grossed over $378 million at the box office and won an Academy Award for Best Picture, it looks as if it might be getting a sequel 16 years after it was released. Of the many Best Picture Oscars awarded since the inaugural ceremony held in 1929, it has become an annual tradition at the event to award this award which usually comes last.
Throughout the years, a number of successful films at the box office have emerged to claim the top award, which most include Titanic, The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King – and most recently, Oppenheimer, all of which circle the Best Picture accolade.
Among the many films that have been bestowed with a Best Picture Oscar over the ages, even colossal earnings at the box office, numerically rather few were given sequels, among other reasons because they were made as independent stories.
A sequel was awarded to one of the first Best Picture winners, The Godfather which was the highest-grossing feature when released, which was followed by two more which include the award winner; The Godfather Part II and The Godfather Part III.
Another instance from the 1970s was Rocky which ultimately lead to five more sequels. Most recently, the next series of Gladiator was launched that saw Gladiator II released on November 22.
Slumdog Millionaire Gets Unexpected Sequel Update 16 Years Later
The Best Picture Winner Made Over $378 Million At The Box Office
Sixteen years after the release of Slumdog Millionaire, it was recently reported that a sequel is in the works or may even be in the studio – surprising news to many. The original movie, which earned an impressive $378.4 million dollars at the box offices worldwide and has won an Oscar for Best Picture, is co-directed by Danny Boyle and Loveleen Tandan; the screenplay was written by Simon Beaufoy based on two novels – one published in 2005 by Vikas Swaroop and another published only three years later.
Jamal Malik, a teenage boy, is raised in one of the impoverished communities in Mumbai. He is a participant in the Indian adaptation of the game show Who Wants to Be a Millionaire, and during the course of the interrogation regarding cheating.
He simply makes sense of his life experiences to explain how he was able to answer all questions posed to him. The actor played the main character in the film, which was his acting debut.
The Slumdog Millionaire sequel was unexpected considering it won Best Picture in 2008. Twelve years have passed since its best picture sequel. The rights to a Slumdog Millionaire sequel and television series have been purchased by a newly formed production company named Bridge7, according to Deadline.
The rights were purchased from Celador Films, the production and financial backers of the first movie, who will cooperate with Bridge7 on the new movie. Grant Kessmanm and Swati Shetty, who operate the new banner, issued this statement:
Some stories linger long after the credits have rolled, and Slumdog Millionaire is surely one of these. The plot has universal appeal, transcending cultures and geography and it consists of the kind of stories we enjoy – that fuse art with deep human feelings.
What This Means For A Slumdog Millionaire Sequel
Its A Serious Possibility‘
This information comes as a bit of a surprise especially since in this period of 16 years that followed the box office success of Slumdog Millionaire that even won Best Picture there has been nearly no talk about a sequel. While this does not mean that it is in the works ever.
The fact that Bridge7 has acquired the rights and intends to collaborate with Celador means that they wish to create a sequel and do something with Slumdog Millionaire – be it a movie or a television series.
Right now, it is not known whether Dev Patel or any other original cast member will reprise their roles in the potential sequel, however it has been said to be ‘the next chapter of Jamal’s journey’.
